Poverty Bay Open update

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A RARE "three twos" feat from Tony Akroyd highlighted the opening round of qualifying in the Emerre and Hathaway Poverty Bay men's golf open this morning.

Patutahi member Akroyd shot 1-under 71 on the Poverty Bay course to be tied at the top with defending champion Peter Kerekere (Poverty Bay) heading into the afternoon's second round of qualifying.

Anaru Reedy (Poverty Bay) was third on 1-over 73, followed by three players on 76 - Matthew Champness (Mt Maunganui), Andrew Higham (Te Puia Springs) and Poverty Bay greenkeeper William Brown (Waikohu).

Akroyd's round was punctuated by the rare feat of making birdie-2s on each of the par-3s at the Bay course, the second, sixth and 11th holes.

This has only been achieved by a handful of players including seven-times Poverty Bay Open champion the late Eric Gordon, who had four twos in one round.

Kerekere, who is vying to become only the second player to win the Open three years running, had a eagle-3 on the fifth hole in his round.

Thirteen players broke 80 this morning but a strengthening wind was making conditions more difficult in the afternoon.

The top 16 players from the two rounds of qualifying advance to the championship division for matchplay over tomorrow and Saturday.

The remainder of the field make up the second to fifth 16 sections.

The Poverty Bay Open was first contested in 1931.